We hope to see all of you at Back to School Night this Wednesday, September 5th from 5-7 p.m. We will start promptly in the auditorium and you will then have the opportunity to go through your student's schedule. If you haven't already signed up for Parent Portal we encourage you to do so. It is a great way to support your student and have access to their attendance and academic progress. Also make sure to download the TJ app to keep up with school related news and events. Thank you and see you at Back to School Night!

Kudos to Jon Poole for receiving the Boettcher Foundation's Teacher Recognition Award and a $1,000 Grant from 2018 TJ Graduate and Boettcher Scholar Molly Jordan Little. Molly nominated Mr. Poole as a teacher who was very influential and had a great impact on her during her time at TJ. Mr. Poole received a personalized plaque and special letter from her along with this Boettcher Foundation grant to utilize in his classroom or for the school. It is a huge honor for Molly to be able to give back immediately in this way through the Boettcher Foundation to a mentor like Mr. Poole who helped and influenced her positively throughout high school. Congratulations Mr. Poole! Click here for the complete Boettcher News Release.

Back to School Night Schedule - September 5th, 5-7:00 p.m.

5:00-5:15 Announcements in Auditorium (Please come to the auditorium for the announcements)

5:15-5:26 Parents get schedules in Gym (Schedules will be sorted alphabetically on tables. Parents DO NOT need a schedule to get into your class! If they can pull it up on their phone, then they can mingle at this time and then proceed to 1st period at 5:26)

5:26-5:36 Period 1

5:40-5:50 Period 2

5:54-6:04 Period 3

6:08-6:18 Period 4

6:22-6:32 Period 6

6:36-6:46 Period 7

6:50-7:00 Period 8

Every Penny Helps!

TJ is partnering with St. Jude to end childhood cancer. The Challenge: If TJ raises $20,000 for St. Jude we will get a new gym floor. This is a great cause and will also benefit the school. The kids are already excited about it and it's a meaningful way to involve our TJ community as well.

Why is the prize a new gym floor, you ask? St. Jude determined the prize. Our gym floor still has a few years of life left, but if we're able to get it replaced this year it will save us money in the future so we can allocate the money that we would've had to spend on the gym floor to other things at TJ. PLUS this is such a great cause that we don't really see a downside to participating. Help kids with cancer and help TJ!

We'll be rolling this out on social media, the TJ website, newsletter, and on Spartan Edition.

The end goal is to have $20,000 raised by October 22... a big ask but I think we're up for the challenge!

If you want to participate, send the link out to your friends and family to donate. Every penny helps!

Get your book at the discounted price of $45 now. The price will increase to $65, so act fast!

Senior Photos & Quotes:Due date: Friday, October 12, 2018 by the end of the school day. Quotes are optional.

All information about the yearbook can found on the journal under the News & Events tab or by clicking here.

Suicide Prevention Parent Training

Colorado Rockies and TJ's Band - Sept. 8

On
September 8, the TJ band will be performing the National Anthem at the Colorado Rockies game for band day. Tickets purchased for the game can benefit the band program, if people use the following link and select Thomas Jefferson High School from the list of school names.

The TJ Gymnastics team will be partnering with Green Sheen to host a paint recycling fundraiser
Saturday September 15th from 10-2 in the North TJ parking lot. Paint recycling is free, however donations benefiting the TJ gymnastics team are greatly appreciated. Bring any unwanted latex/water based paints, stains, and clear finishes in their original containers for recycling. We will not accept oil, alkyd, lacquer, urethane or other chemicals. Come say hi to the TJ gymnasts and get rid of your unwanted paint!

Family and Community Engagement - September 22

Please see the attached flyers from the office of Family and Community Engagement (FACE) giving more information about how to support your student. (English/Spanish)

Choose from a variety of topics to learn important and effective educational information, strategies, and resources to help support your children's academic, social, and emotional growth!

Why attend?

Families are children's first teachers and advocates, and our best academic partners!

The second annual Energy Day Colorado Festival, which will take place onSaturday, September 22, 2018, at East High School in Denver, Colorado. This FREE, family festival designed to promote and encourage excitement and interest in energy, environment, sustainability, science, robotics, technology, engineering & mathematics (STEM) will include:

* More than 50 interactive exhibits and demonstrations geared toward K-12 students and their families showcasing the exciting careers in STEM

* Booths & Exhibits demonstrating advances in technology, robotics, alternative ways to power vehicles, Oil and Gas technology, as well as clean-tech and renewable energy sources

* Opportunities to interact with experts in multiple and diverse industries

* Music, Food & Games & FIRST Robotics regional competition

* Cash awards for winners of STEM competitions held throughout the school year (CEA & CEEF have awarded over $100,000 toward winners)

Part-Time Custodian Wanted

PTO News

You are invited!
PTO meetings are the second Tuesday of the month from 6-7pm at TJHS in room 111. The first meeting of the year is Tuesday, September 11th
. Principal Christoff will welcome families and give an overview of the year. The PTO Presidents will give a brief look back and look forward for the PTO and the role it plays. We will also talk about open volunteer positions and the many ways to get involved in the TJ community. PTO meetings are a great source of information so please come if you can. Everyone is welcome!

GT News

TJ Master Calendar

TJ has a new master calendar! It resides on the main page of the school website,
http://tjhs.dpsk12.org/, under the main articles. The "Upcoming Events" section gives you a glimpse of events and activities, but you can see the monthly view if you click on "More Events."

If you'd like to keep up with dates and upcoming events more easily, be sure to click on "Subscribe to the TJ Calendar Feed" at the top of the calendar. (Please note, if you have previously subscribed to the calendar, you must re-subscribe to the new one, as the old one will no longer be seen). Be sure to stay informed and stay connected!

News from the Kitchen - Students Must Complete Lunch Application!

All students need to fill out a lunch application every year. It's all on line now. No more paper applications! Visit www.myschoolapps.com to apply. It takes about ten minutes to complete and can be done on your cell phone. There is only a 30 day grace period to complete the lunch app on line or the student will be put on a paid status.

New Parent Portal

We're excited to bring you this new and improved experience on the Parent Portal, and we want to keep you informed about the new features we will be adding to the platform. To create a Parent Portal account, please visit myportal.dpsk12.org and click Getting Started. If you do not remember your username or password, contact our hotline at 720-423-3163 or email dps_portalteam@dpsk12.org.

The TJ Spirit Store is stocked and ready to sell! The store inside TJ will be open every lunch hour August 27-31. Show your TJ pride in style and comfort with hoodies, t-shirts, hats, blankets and stadium chairs. After August 31, the store will be open during events like the Homecoming football game, some volleyball & basketball games and ArtFest. Or, make an appointment to shop with Carrie (TJHS.Store@gmail.com). The store accepts cash, credit cards and checks. You can view several items here, but we are not currently accepting online orders.

Parents: Save the Date

Please join us for a casual get together on the rooftop at The Pioneer! It's a great opportunity to stop in for a minute or the evening to meet new and existing TJ parents. (PTO will provide a few light eats.)

TJ Parent Happy Hour

Wednesday, October 22, 5:30-7:30pm

The Pioneer

2401 South University Boulevard

See you there!

Mental Health and Social/Emotional Tips

Did You Know?

There are countless benefits to increased student attendance- greater learning, a brighter future, less delinquency, and more funds for schools.

Parent/guardian involvement, or whole-family involvement. Over 30 years of research documents that when parents are involved in their child's education that child is more likely to succeed in school.
A continuum of supports, including meaningful incentives for good attendance and consequences for poor attendance.
Collaboration among community actors such as law enforcement, mental health workers, mentors, and social service providers, in addition to educators.

Some ideas to help with your student's attendance:

1)
Develop regular communication with teachers. A single contact is not enough to establish meaningful communication between your child's teacher and yourself. Instead, make a habit of communicating when necessary or call during the teacher's conference hour and ask how your child is doing.

2)
Attending school conferences. By attending all conferences, you increase the effectiveness of the meetings and always have a voice in the discussion. In addition, teachers and administrators will view your involvement as a sure sign that you are involved in the educational process with your child and that you are taking an active role in his academic progress.

3)
Encourage your child verbally and with rewards or incentives when he/she does well. Positive rewards often help kids remain excited about reaching higher goals. If certain rewards motivate your child, continue to use them when teachers send home improved grades.

4)
Set reasonable goals for improvement and announce the expectations to your child. Don't set the goals too high for your child to achieve. Instead, set realistic ones that will be good benchmarks to track her progress over time

5)
Set a schedule/time frame for completion of daily homework. One of the problems in completing homework in a timely manner is that kids tend to waste time when they get home. Consider a break from school for 30 minutes or so and then instruct your child to get back to studies before dinnertime. One other way you can control the amount of time involved is to put a timer on each separate homework task until she has completed each one. Consider rewarding with short 5-10 minutes breaks after the completion of each task.

6)
Teach kids to set their own priorities. Children should learn that it is important to put certain tasks before others an early age. By practicing this with homework and chores, you reinforce an important life skill will follow him throughout life.

Class of 2021 Fall Meet & Greet Parent Party - All parents of the Class of 2021 are invited to a party September 15 at 7 pm at the home of Holly and Fred Chione. This is a great opportunity to get to know other 2021 class parents. Our kiddos will be seniors before we know it so join the fun now and get involved. Drinks and apps will be served. Feel free to bring a dessert to share. Suggested donation of $10 at the door. All proceeds go towards the 2021 senior year activities including the after-prom party and Mr. TJ.